LOL at that intro drawing, I'm saving that for later. Thanks as always for sharing - especially 0108, 0114, 0120 (our neighborhood pair has been making an almost-nightly appearance and it feels like a blessing each time), 0122 (the dog hair as second garment is real), and 0127.
I’ve been taking a go at this myself, and I’m wondering when in the day you find yourself writing. Is it in the moment, or an end-of-day reflection? It’s a habit that doesn’t feel intuitive yet, but I think I just need to find the rhythm of it.
Here’s a few from last month (leaving out some that feel more personal) -
- Jan. 1: New year, new day, new anxiety.
- Jan. 4: Pro tip to CEOs: your employees will come to the office a lot more when you offer free massages. (Yes, I can be bribed with earthly delights.)
- Jan. 8: Sometimes it’s okay to answer the question “when will things be better?” with “tomorrow.”
- Jan. 11: I know I don’t have chlorophyll in my cells, but based on how much I benefit from solar energy, I swear I’m photosynthetic.
- Jan. 12: Let’s play “did I accidentally get a full-caffeine cappuccino, or is this just good old anxiety?”
- Jan. 13: I’m starting to realize that temperature, like so many numbers experienced, is a little bit subjective.
- Jan. 14: I wouldn’t mind living life more frequently at the pace of bread.
- Jan. 16: I’d like to be a little less disappointed with a perfectly mediocre day.
- Jan. 17: More times than not, some effort is better than no effort at all.
- Jan. 19: Sometimes you just need a nap, and then some water, and then all is better.
- Jan. 23: Long days are so much easier to survive when there’s less time to think about how long of a day it really is.
- Jan. 27: Running down a full battery feels much better than running down a half battery.
- Jan. 28: The definition of leisure is the liberty to operate outside of the human clock pace.
These are marvelous! (I won’t say “delicious”!!). I’m in the same Jan. 4 mood as you. I don’t have any sentences to share yet but this practice intrigues me so I’m starting it today. 🥰
Not that it matters, but the link is to a post by Anna Kode´; it's really not a bad article either. My problem, if it can be described as such, is this idea that we can't ever just be. If your entire day from waking to sleeping is constant insanity, why bring a pen and paper along so even those 18 minutes you may have to yourself on a subway are now full of doing, too? Well, I mean, I'D have a pen and paper, but then I also wouldn't live in a place where I take the subway. What's my point? Do I have one? Probably not...or maybe it's this: the difference between what you do and she recommends doing are two very different things. Swimming through the daily and seeing it, smelling it, hearing it, feeling it, a near face full of hawk *chef's kiss*...which is as close as I'll get to calling your sentences that word.
Also, I feel this one in my bones: "There’s nothing beautiful and meaningful in the world that can’t be ruined by grant wrestling and the nonprofit industrial complex"
You won't have any disagreement from me on "just being", Sunday. My brow furrows more over folks living with earbuds constantly stuffed into their skulls. But also, far be it from me to judge how others spend their time away from everything else. And I also have to admit that when doing workshops – something I'm really thinking I need to do less of – I pretty consistently advocate for what Kodé is talking about as a way for writers to make their stuff more believable by taking particular note of little details, and usually writing them down is the best way.
I think the other difference is preference...I hear her talk about noticing everything in a city and it's all people-y *shudder* Whereas most of what you're noticing is nature *happy sigh*
It's this "We’re shoulder to shoulder with many universes; countless lives, hopes, dreams and fears as complicated as our own, all clustered in the same crowded shops, train cars and sidewalks."
vs
This: "Bitter cold but oh, the sunlight on towering ponderosas, lodgepoles, and firs decorated with snow."
The humble acknowledgement that there's so much good about technology as I record a few chirps from a nearby bird on the Merlin app and I become so excited to discover I'm looking at a backlit and otherwise almost unrecognizable ruby-crowned kinglet and my day is charmed for the rest of its hours.
Thanks for the inspiration Chris! And I loved the hill. Lol
What a great month's worth! In my teaching career, I often say "this is not the mountain I'm going to die on," so your observation has great force for me. Also, I have been pissed if about Andrew Jackson on the $20 bill since 1984, for all the good that's done me. And all it takes is one hit Broadway musical to knock the idea of Harriet Tubman on the $10 bill clean out of the discourse. Let's replace Jackson with Tubman. Or Crazy Horse. Or oh, so many others.
And as a fifth grade teacher, I can tell you that the phrase "a new batch of 4th graders" rings a deep knell of foreboding here.
Rather than back to feudal Christianity seems to me we need to go forward (full circle, or spiral) to indigeneity, which for us settler colonist types is several generations of humble apprenticeship away …
Oh, I love these gorgeous one-sentence truths. Thank you for sharing them. I very much want to try this practice. I'm curious about your process, do you revise and edit them? Mentally compose sentences throughout the day? Apologies if you've written about this practice before and I missed it.
I mentally compose sentences all the time and make every effort to get them down when that happens because I WILL forget them. This is a quote I've learned the truth to the hard way, over and over again:
"The writer who postpones the recording of his thoughts uses an iron which has cooled to burn a hole with." — Henry David Thoreau
Sometimes I revise a little, but usually not. They'll get tweaked if I turn them into actual poems or something but it's been a few months since I did that.
As always, I love your articles Chris! Wanted to let you know that one of your daily poems really stuck with me this week, as I've been going through some of these things.
2024_0102: Weathering the indignation over a perceived slight is an excellent reminder that post-holing the drifted snows of the high road is how one gets truly magnificent quads and hamstrings.
I also just pre-ordered a copy of your book! Congrats on finishing it and I cannot wait to read.
LOL at that intro drawing, I'm saving that for later. Thanks as always for sharing - especially 0108, 0114, 0120 (our neighborhood pair has been making an almost-nightly appearance and it feels like a blessing each time), 0122 (the dog hair as second garment is real), and 0127.
I’ve been taking a go at this myself, and I’m wondering when in the day you find yourself writing. Is it in the moment, or an end-of-day reflection? It’s a habit that doesn’t feel intuitive yet, but I think I just need to find the rhythm of it.
Here’s a few from last month (leaving out some that feel more personal) -
- Jan. 1: New year, new day, new anxiety.
- Jan. 4: Pro tip to CEOs: your employees will come to the office a lot more when you offer free massages. (Yes, I can be bribed with earthly delights.)
- Jan. 8: Sometimes it’s okay to answer the question “when will things be better?” with “tomorrow.”
- Jan. 11: I know I don’t have chlorophyll in my cells, but based on how much I benefit from solar energy, I swear I’m photosynthetic.
- Jan. 12: Let’s play “did I accidentally get a full-caffeine cappuccino, or is this just good old anxiety?”
- Jan. 13: I’m starting to realize that temperature, like so many numbers experienced, is a little bit subjective.
- Jan. 14: I wouldn’t mind living life more frequently at the pace of bread.
- Jan. 16: I’d like to be a little less disappointed with a perfectly mediocre day.
- Jan. 17: More times than not, some effort is better than no effort at all.
- Jan. 19: Sometimes you just need a nap, and then some water, and then all is better.
- Jan. 23: Long days are so much easier to survive when there’s less time to think about how long of a day it really is.
- Jan. 27: Running down a full battery feels much better than running down a half battery.
- Jan. 28: The definition of leisure is the liberty to operate outside of the human clock pace.
These are wonderful, Lucy. Anymore, I make notes no matter what time of day it is just so I don't forget.
Living life at the pace of bread - I love this!
These are marvelous! (I won’t say “delicious”!!). I’m in the same Jan. 4 mood as you. I don’t have any sentences to share yet but this practice intrigues me so I’m starting it today. 🥰
Let us know how it goes for you!
Re Jan.11 - whatever happened to Harriott Tubman anyway?! Someone made a rubber stamp of her so you could remodel your $20s. Sometimes people are alright. https://wheresgeorgerubberstamps.com/collections/harret-tubman-stamps
I did get a $1 bill yesterday which had a "Trumpers are Insane" stamp. Enjoyed that.
memes on paper money are so retro!
This is amazing
💪
Fantastic!
Not that it matters, but the link is to a post by Anna Kode´; it's really not a bad article either. My problem, if it can be described as such, is this idea that we can't ever just be. If your entire day from waking to sleeping is constant insanity, why bring a pen and paper along so even those 18 minutes you may have to yourself on a subway are now full of doing, too? Well, I mean, I'D have a pen and paper, but then I also wouldn't live in a place where I take the subway. What's my point? Do I have one? Probably not...or maybe it's this: the difference between what you do and she recommends doing are two very different things. Swimming through the daily and seeing it, smelling it, hearing it, feeling it, a near face full of hawk *chef's kiss*...which is as close as I'll get to calling your sentences that word.
Also, I feel this one in my bones: "There’s nothing beautiful and meaningful in the world that can’t be ruined by grant wrestling and the nonprofit industrial complex"
You won't have any disagreement from me on "just being", Sunday. My brow furrows more over folks living with earbuds constantly stuffed into their skulls. But also, far be it from me to judge how others spend their time away from everything else. And I also have to admit that when doing workshops – something I'm really thinking I need to do less of – I pretty consistently advocate for what Kodé is talking about as a way for writers to make their stuff more believable by taking particular note of little details, and usually writing them down is the best way.
Agreed, all around.
I think the other difference is preference...I hear her talk about noticing everything in a city and it's all people-y *shudder* Whereas most of what you're noticing is nature *happy sigh*
It's this "We’re shoulder to shoulder with many universes; countless lives, hopes, dreams and fears as complicated as our own, all clustered in the same crowded shops, train cars and sidewalks."
vs
This: "Bitter cold but oh, the sunlight on towering ponderosas, lodgepoles, and firs decorated with snow."
If I wasn't so broke, I would relish burning every $20 bill that crosses my path. Burn Andrew Jackson, burn — you banished us from our homelands.
✊🏽
I am gonna chuckle about that illustration for DAYS. *chef's kiss*
😂
Like a child on Christmas morning, I clap in glee when I see new sentences! Thanks for your perspective.
Clapping in glee! I love that, thank you.
The humble acknowledgement that there's so much good about technology as I record a few chirps from a nearby bird on the Merlin app and I become so excited to discover I'm looking at a backlit and otherwise almost unrecognizable ruby-crowned kinglet and my day is charmed for the rest of its hours.
Thanks for the inspiration Chris! And I loved the hill. Lol
That's a good one! Merlin is an excellent example of technology done right in a sea of unmentionable horrors.
What a great month's worth! In my teaching career, I often say "this is not the mountain I'm going to die on," so your observation has great force for me. Also, I have been pissed if about Andrew Jackson on the $20 bill since 1984, for all the good that's done me. And all it takes is one hit Broadway musical to knock the idea of Harriet Tubman on the $10 bill clean out of the discourse. Let's replace Jackson with Tubman. Or Crazy Horse. Or oh, so many others.
And as a fifth grade teacher, I can tell you that the phrase "a new batch of 4th graders" rings a deep knell of foreboding here.
I don't think I want any Indigenous faces anywhere near any currency but I appreciate the sentiment and solidarity. 😂
I’ll take two $10s over a $20 any day. 😂
So many thoughts here to savor (oops) and ponder … “the tax our entitled comfort relentlessly forces on the world”
Yes. That one caught my breath.
I know, Paul Kingsnorth did take a turn toward the insufferable, didn’t he?
Maybe he was always there? Probably.
Absolutely.
That man is the high priest, lord of the rings, king of pretentious dipshits.
I doubt he's ever taken his eyes off his own navel.
Rather than back to feudal Christianity seems to me we need to go forward (full circle, or spiral) to indigeneity, which for us settler colonist types is several generations of humble apprenticeship away …
That’s what Kingsnorth used to think.
Oh, I love these gorgeous one-sentence truths. Thank you for sharing them. I very much want to try this practice. I'm curious about your process, do you revise and edit them? Mentally compose sentences throughout the day? Apologies if you've written about this practice before and I missed it.
I mentally compose sentences all the time and make every effort to get them down when that happens because I WILL forget them. This is a quote I've learned the truth to the hard way, over and over again:
"The writer who postpones the recording of his thoughts uses an iron which has cooled to burn a hole with." — Henry David Thoreau
Sometimes I revise a little, but usually not. They'll get tweaked if I turn them into actual poems or something but it's been a few months since I did that.
Thank you Chris! Yes, it's like remembering a dream if you don't write it down, I imagine.
The rhythm of this month, these sentences . . . deeply musical.
And 12 flickers, all at once? I am officially jealous.
They're like a gang out here!
As always, I love your articles Chris! Wanted to let you know that one of your daily poems really stuck with me this week, as I've been going through some of these things.
2024_0102: Weathering the indignation over a perceived slight is an excellent reminder that post-holing the drifted snows of the high road is how one gets truly magnificent quads and hamstrings.
I also just pre-ordered a copy of your book! Congrats on finishing it and I cannot wait to read.
Thanks, Clay!
Loved “Familiar terrain becomes unexplored wilderness in the billowing fog of the Grass Valley this morning.”!
Thanks, Craig.
I enjoy these snippets and think they are a great practice for anyone who wants to be more observant.
I pre-ordered my copy of the book a week ago and received confirmation from your friends at the bookshop. Much obliged.
Thanks for ordering!
Yes! Happy Imbolc y'all! Thanks for remembering, Chris!
Same to you! 🌿